College education -- losing its value?

It would be difficult being a parent with college age high schoolers today, given the cost/benefit ration now under serious review everywhere.  This article provides a perspective on this discussion now going on at various college symposiums.  The stratospheric costs of college are now taking a serious bite out of family budgets and the tightening of government budgets probably mean less credit availability.  At times like these the value of an education investment also comes under scrutiny as is the case in this article on higher education here.